Between now and its inception as an amalgam of two
opposition parties, with a motley mix of disaffected PDP members, APC appears
to have gained some momentum that even surpassed its best expectations. It
garnered the Presidency and later, the governorship of Imo State.

Yet, in recent times and despite being in power both at the
Federal level and Imo State, there is this palpable downward spiral that is
sure to adversely affect the party’s chances in the 2019 Imo governorship
polls.

While it is easy for many discerning minds to see why APC is
losing its way and thereby gravely hurting its flag bear – Hope Uzodimma, the
party itself seems sadly blinded by much hype and vainglory, while it continues
as it were, to be persisting on a path of self-immolation. Below are some key
illustrations:

First, Ndi Imo are evidently tired of hearing the same
hackneyed singsongs and negative in-house campaigns against itself that have
become the hallmark of APC since its ranks emerged from a bruising civil war
that felled Rochas and Uche Nwosu and threw up Hope Uzodimma. After all that
self-nastiness, one would have expected that the party would quickly put its
house in order and present a united front in the lead-up to the hotly contested
Imo guber election. But that didn’t happen.

What followed was Senator Osita Izunaso running to APGA,
Ararume running to APGA, Uche Nwosu running to Action Alliance (a briefcase
party), and other ranks running in all directions, all in a common and
despicable desperation for tickets. And then this: Rochas has sworn that Hope
Uzodimma would be governor only over his dead body. Pray! How then can Hope
have any hope of winning when his own party is fighting him from within and
without?

Second is the party’s well-worn mantra on fighting
corruption. APC talks about corruption, especially against its own governor and
Emeka Ihedioha without producing a single evidence of corruption against these
persons. When pressed to the wall, their fringe elements go wild and start
cursing and desperately pointing to all manners of conjectures, rumors and
outright lies. APC also, seeming to be speaking for Hope Uzodimma, constantly
talks about sending people to jail for corruption without stating how it’s
going to go over the heads of the judiciary and due process to accomplish that
overnight.

Is the party implying that it will suspend the Constitution
of Nigeria and the laws of Imo State in fighting corruption against the
outgoing administration? Or, will the presumptive Uzodimma administration go
rogue and federal to charge Ihedioha for being corrupt when he was Deputy
Speaker of House of Representatives? Or is it that they will try and jail Uche
Nwosu for being guilty by association with Rochas or for his various stints in
Rochas’ administration? And why would APC jump into the fray to be prodding
Senator Anyanwu against Ihedioha?

Third is allowing and otherwise encouraging Hope Uzodimma
and his fundamentalist and provincial supporters to continue to posture him as
a sectional candidate in the hope of clinching the Orlu vote. Even worse,
Uzodimma appears to be basking in such infamous glory of an Orlu candidate that
already has twelve local government areas in his electoral kitty. While this
may work with some fringe sectional partisans, it is at the same time
alienating APC’s Owerri and Okigwe faithfulls and even sensible Orlu people who
are embarrassed by such arrogant ‘borne
to rule’ mantra.

And to say that this has permanently hurt APC and Uzodimma
is stating what everybody, but the APC/Uzodimma, already knows. Uzodimma and
his party fail to understand that the reason Udenwa had won in the past was
because they garnered quantum support from Okigwe and Owerri zones. Therefore,
campaigning on a fundamentalist Orlu support transitorily may whip up some
sectional sentiments but in the end it scares away multitudes, including those
from even Orlu, elite and grassroots alike.

Fourth is Uzodimma’s troubles with the law, which had caused
his arrest (or invitation) by federal law enforcement agencies. Instead of
going to great lengths to array credible public defense or explanations, APC
unleashed media attacks on Ndi Imo who dared question Uzodimma’s integrity.
Uzodimma himself became visibly angry and utterly defensive when questioned on
these by the media, thus suggesting that he is an intolerant person, and that
he might have something to hide.

If anything, these whole disgraceful conduct will surely
result in terrifying voters that had initially considered voting for Uzodimma
just for the heck of the ‘change’ and the Orlu factor he has been touting. Yet,
to this day, APC and Uzodimma persist in sweeping the criminal allegations
under the carpet and demonizing anybody who raises them as genuine issues for
the election.

Fifth, in the few places APC initially appeared to be doing
well, the popular angst generated by Uzodimma’s many scandals is beginning to
scare away even core APC apparatchiks from Uzodimma. Most notable is President
Buhari, who did everything (in plain view) to distance himself from Uzodimma
when he recently came to Imo State on a campaign stump. In addition to Buhari,
it is no longer a secret that many APC candidates for House of Representatives
and State Assembly are now so afraid that their continuing to campaign for
Uzodimma may cost them their election. These candidates’ most recent
poster-campaign publications are remarkable for tellingly excluding Uzodimma’s
bust or image.

It has become so bad that, some of the candidates are said
to be campaigning for other governorship candidates by night while posturing as
APC by day. Ditto for many APC donors who are now reportedly refusing to donate
more funds for a cash-strapped Uzodimma’s campaign.

This whole thing doesn’t make any electoral sense and the
informed Imo electorate is observant and taking notes that will surely and
negatively bear on APC on March 2, 2019. The only reasonable conclusion to be
drawn from the forgoing is that APC is struggling with a certain sense of alarm
that it cannot wean itself away from a self-inflicted malaise that is about to
sink its chances of winning the keenly contested 2019 Imo guber election.